The present invention generally relates to tape cassette loading and ejecting devices in magnetic recording and/or reproducing apparatuses, and more particularly to a tape cassette loading and ejecting device applied to a magnetic recording and/or reproducing apparatus, which is designed so that a tape cassette is inserted from a front opening of the apparatus and loaded into a predetermined loading position inside the apparatus and unloaded from the predetermined loading position.
Generally, a cassette type magnetic recording and/or reproducing apparatus is designed to operate with a cassette which accommodates a magnetic tape (such a cassette will hereinafter be referred to as a tape cassette). In the present specification and the appended claims, a so-called tape cartridge is also included within the scope of the tape cassette. The tape cartridge or cassette is loaded into a predetermined position inside the apparatus. Then, the magnetic tape (cassette tape) is automatically drawn out of the tape cassette and is guided along a predetermined tape traveling path which passes a guide drum, by an automatic tape loading mechanism.
The above automatic tape loading mechanism and the tape cassette have been reduced to practice in video tape recorders. These video tape recorders have been marketed in a large number of countries, and the construction thereof is well known.
When loading the tape cassette into the video tape recorder, the tape cassette is lowered from above the predetermined loading position. Tape draw-out members which intercept the magnetic tape and load the magnetic tape into a predetermined tape traveling path, relatively enter inside the tape cassette as the tape cassette is lowered to the predetermined loading position. Conventionally, there was a tape cassette loading and ejecting device having a cassette holder which is movable up and down. This cassette holder projected from the top plate of the video tape recorder. According to this conventional device, the tape cassette was loaded into the predetermined loading position by inserting the tape cassette into the cassette holder which projects from the top plate of the video tape recorder, and then manually pushing the cassette holder down together with the tape cassette which is accommodated within the cassette holder.
Recently, a so-called front-loading type video tape recorder has been developed. In the video tape recorder of this type, the tape cassette is partly inserted through an inserting opening which is located in the front of the video tape recorder. The partly inserted tape cassette is automatically drawn inside the video tape recorder, and is loaded into the predetermined loading position by a front-loading type tape cassette loading and ejecting device.
Examples of the conventional front-loading type tape cassette loading and ejecting device may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,320,424. In the tape cassette loading and ejecting devices of this type, the cassette holder is designed to be driven by a motor to move substantially in the horizontal direction and move substantially in the vertical direction, between a cassette ejecting position and a cassette loading position. It is essential that the cassette holder be accurately positioned in the cassette loading position, so that operations such as drawing out the tape from the cassette case and carrying out recording or reproduction from the tape can be correctly performed. Thus, in the cassette loading position, the cassette holder is applied with a force which is exerted by a spring and the like, and is pushed against a fixed stopper so that the cassette holder is positively maintained in the correct cassette loading position. However, there is no means provided, with respect to the cassette ejcting position of the cassette holder, for resiliently positioning and holding the cassette holder in the cassette ejecting position. In other words, the cassette ejecting position of the cassette holder is determined by the mounting position of a switch which operates to stop the rotation of the above motor. For this reason, in order to improve the accuracy with which the cassette holder is positioned in the cassette ejecting position, it is necessary to improve the precision with which the above switch is mounted.
Generally, the error in the mounting position of the switch will be emphasized and turn out as a large error in the cassette ejecting position of the cassette holder. Accordingly, the switch must be mounted with a high precision. However, it is difficult in practice to mount the switch with such a high precision when assembling the recording and/or reproducing apparatus, and in reality, the mounting position of the switch is inconsistent. When there is inconsistency in the mounting position of the switch, the cassette ejecting position of the cassette holder will become inconsistent, and as a result, there will be inconsistency in the amount of the tape cassette which projects outward from the inserting opening of the recording and/or reproducing apparatus when the tape cassette ejecting operation is completed. Thus, when the motor is stopped earlier than usual, the amount of the tape cassette which projects outward from the inserting opening will become small. In this case, there is a problem in that it will be difficult for an operator to hold and pull the tape cassette out of the recording and/or reproducing apparatus.